Page 370 - Congress

No difference in condition of roads in Maharashtra and Bihar: Jairam Ramesh

AICC general secretary Jairam Ramesh, who is walking with Rahul Gandhi in Bharat Jodo Yatra, on Wednesday said the condition of roads in Maharashtra and Bihar is equally bad and took a dig at the Central government over the road construction. Talking to reporters in Washim, Ramesh said the condition of roads in Maharashtra is bad unlike in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. He said he experienced difficulty in walking on roads in Maharashtra leg of the foot march. The Yatra continued on the 10th day of its Maharashtra leg on Wednesday in Washim district in the Vidarbha region. "There is a minister in the Modi government who holds an important portfolio and it is believed that after Sher Shah Suri, he has constructed all roads. He has an image of a master road builder. He also boasts of his work. What has happened to Marathwada and Vidarbha?'' Ramesh asked. He said Maharashtra is number one in investment "but I have to say there is no difference in terms of

Tradition of PMs not carrying domestic politics abroad broken: Congress

The Congress attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday, saying it has long been a tradition that PMs do not carry their domestic politics and prejudices to Indian audiences abroad but this convention was broken after May 2014 with the latest example being in Indonesia. The Opposition party's attack came a day after Modi, while addressing the Indian diaspora in Indonesia, asserted that there is a "huge difference" between pre- and post-2014 India The prime minister said the country is now moving ahead at an "unprecedented speed and scale" as he showcased the achievements of his term in power to the diaspora in Indonesia. Attacking Modi, Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said on Twitter, "It's long been a tradition that our PMs do not carry their domestic politics, prejudices & partisanship to Indian audiences abroad. This healthy convention was broken after May 2014, the latest example being in Indonesia where FekuMaster once again showed ...

Early release of Bilkis case convicts talking point in Gujarat polls

The premature release of 11 convicts in the 2002 Bilkis Bano gangrape case has become part of political and electoral discourse in Gujarat in run-up to the next month's Assembly polls with the opposition Congress mentioning about the episode in its poll manifesto and vowing to ensure justice to the survivor. A section of observers and activists feels the 20-year-old issue and the latest development will help the opposition party in getting votes, while others believe it will leave no impact in the Assembly elections to be held in December 1 and 5. In its poll manifesto unveiled a few day ago, the Congress said it would revoke the remission granted by the state government to the 11 convicts, sentenced to life imprisonment in 2008 in the 2002 Bilkis Bano case by a Mumbai court. Following the remission, these 11 men convicted in the case walked out of the Godhra sub-jail on August 15. Bilkis Bano was a resident of Randhikpur village of tribal-dominated Dahod district, which falls unde

Bharat Jodo Yatra continues in Maharashtra, heads for Akola district

The Bharat Jodo Yatra led by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi continued on the 10th day of its Maharashtra leg on Wednesday in Washim district. The foot march, which began at 6 am from Jambhrun Phata, will proceed to Medshi village in the evening and will take a night halt at Patur in Akola district. The yatra started on September 7 from Kanniyakumari in Tamil Nadu and entered its 70th day on Wednesday. Gandhi on Tuesday claimed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) keeps attacking the Constitution everyday as it does not want to accept that Dalits, tribals and the poor should get rights. He had also targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the implementation of Goods and Service Tax (GST) and the 2016 note-ban exercise and dubbed them as two weapons to kill small and medium businessmen, shopkeepers and farmers. Gandhi had also hit out at Hindutva ideologue V D Savarkar and alleged he was "working" for the British and took pension from them. The Bharat Jodo Yatra, a mass contact initiat

Rahul says only Cong can protect Constitution, attacks Centre on note-ban

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday claimed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) keeps attacking the Constitution everyday as it does not want to accept that Dalits, tribals and the poor should get rights, and hit out at Hindutva ideologue V D Savarkar for "working" for the British. Gandhi, whose Bharat Jodo Yatra entered its 69th day and reached Washim district in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra from Hingoli on Tuesday, said it is only the Congress that can protect the Constitution, give education to tribals and safeguard their land and rights. The Lok Sabha MP from Kerala addressed two rallies during the day and stepped up his attack on the BJP over a range of issues - from the Constitution, to 2016 note-ban, to Goods and Service Tax (GST) to farm loans. The first public meeting, addressed by him in the afternoon, was organised on the occasion of tribal freedom fighter Birsa Munda's birth anniversary, which is also celebrated as the Janjatiya Gaurav Divas or Tribal Pride Day. T

Kharge appoints 4 leaders as coordinators attached to Cong chief's office

The Congress president has appointed four party leaders including Rajya Sabha MP Syed Nasir Hussain as coordinators attached with his office. "Congress president has approved the proposal of appointing Syed Nasir Hussain, MP, Pranav Jha, Gurdeep Singh Sappal and Gaurav Pandhi, as AICC coordinators attached to the office of the Congress president with immediate effect," said an official statement of the party. While Sappal has been a former officer on special duty to the vice president of India and was also the CEO of Rajya Sabha TV, Jha has been the AICC secretary in the Communications department. These are the first appointments of leaders who would be part of the office of the new Congress president.

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Congress facing challenges, Bharat Jodo Yatra brought unity: Jairam Ramesh

The Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Yatra has brought unity in the Congress in the last 70 days as the party has been fighting political challenges, senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said on Tuesday. The foot march, a mass contact initiative of the Congress, entered its 69th day on Tuesday and reached Washim district in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra from Hingoli. Addressing a press conference in Washim, Ramesh said Gandhi will also address a public meeting of tribals on the occasion of the birth anniversary of iconic tribal freedom fighter Birsa Munda. Targeting the Centre, Ramesh claimed the Forest Rights Act and the Land Acquisition Act 2013 have been weakened and this is specially harmful for tribals. The legislations were brought during the rule of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA). Ramesh alleged that the Narendra Modi government's policy was to forcefully take the land of farmers and give it to the big companies. The Bharat Jodo Yatra has nothing to do with the vot

Left protest march against Kerala Guv creating anarchy in state: Congress

The Congress on Tuesday criticised the LDF move to carry out a march to the Raj Bhavan here in protest against Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan's actions regarding universities and bills passed by the state legislature, saying it is creating "anarchy" in the state. AICC general secretary K C Venugopal said the government appointed Vice-Chancellors in universities in the state in violation of norms and "now to change that situation, they are carrying out a protest march against the Governor." "It is creating anarchy in the state," he said, while speaking to the media in New Delhi. The senior Congress leader claimed that the state government was responsible for the actions of the Governor and said both were acting in furtherance of their established interests. Venugopal also claimed that Khan too was equally responsible as he forgot his Constitutional position and allegedly carried out "publicity stunts." Meanwhile, the LDF went forward with its planned protest march, which saw a

Harpal Singh Bilari-led BKU faction to support Rahul's Bharat Jodo Yatra

The BKU (Bilari) said that they will participate in the yatra when it passes through western Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan in the coming days.

Congress yatra: Rahul blasts Centre over Agnipath, Chinese goods in India

Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Monday claimed the 'Agnipath' recruitment scheme will adversely impact the morale of armed forces as he continued his attack on the Centre on a range of issues - from note ban to unemployment to inflation - during his Bharat Jodo Yatra which entered its 68th day. Speaking at a public meeting in Hingoli district of central Maharashtra, organised as part of the Congress's mass outreach programme, he hit out at the Narendra Modi government, claiming policies like 'Agnipath', note ban and Goods and Service Tax (GST) were formulated to instill fear among the people of the country. Gandhi alleged the prime minister wants 'Made in China' products as this will benefit "two-three billionaires" in the country. What is Narendra Modi ji doing? They (the BJP) are trying to spread fear, violence and hatred. Be it note ban, Agnipath, GST...all their policies only scare people. The one who gets scared, there is hatred in his heart which leads to division in the society

Modi govt focuses on changing names, not work: Congress President Kharge

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge accused the BJP-led Centre on Monday of not acknowledging the development witnessed under the previous dispensations and following a policy of "changing names", instead of focusing on work. The government is "not a democratic one" and is following a policy of "divide and rule", Kharge alleged in his remarks at the Nehru Memorial Lecture that was delivered by leading academic Purushottam Agrawal at the Jawahar Bhawan here. "Earlier, the Nehru Memorial Lecture used to happen at (the) Teen Murti (Bhavan) where his (Nehru's) views and ideas were put forward. But this government is not even allowing giving place there for putting forward Nehru's ideas," he said. The Congress president also accused the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of trying to appropriate Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and pointed out that he was a Congressman. "If you consider him your own, also follow his principles," he said, hitting out at the saffron party. Kharge said Prime ..

Congress appoints observers to oversee the upcoming Gujarat elections

The Congress on Monday appointed a host of observers to oversee the upcoming Gujarat elections. While the party has appointed five zonal observers, it has appointed 32 observers in each of the 32 Lok Sabha constituencies and five other observers. AICC general secretary Mukul Wasnik will be the party observer for the South zone headquartered in Surat while Mohan Prakash will oversee the polls in Saurashtra zone and will be headquartered at Rajkot. Former Maharashtra chief minister Prithviraj Chavan will be positioned at Baroda and oversee the polls for central region and BK Hariprasad will look after the North zone and will be headquartered at Ahmedabad. Congress leader KH Muniappa will be the fifth zonal observer. The Congress is seeking to oust the BJP from power in the home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi where the saffron party has been in power for more than two decades. Elections for the 182-member Gujarat Assembly will be held in two phases on December 1 and 5. The ...

Congress to launch state-wide padayatra in Bihar from Dec 28: Jairam Ramesh

The Congress is set to launch a state-wide padayatra in Bihar from December 28 on the lines of 'Bharat Jodo Yatra', senior party leader Jairam Ramesh said here. He said the 1,200-km-long march against the "communal agenda of the BJP" will start from Banka district and conclude in Bodh Gaya. It will cover 17 districts of the state. Rahul Gandhi, however, is unlikely to take part in the state-wide padayatra in Bihar. "The Bharat Jodo Yatra has unsettled the BJP, which has resorted to cheap and childish diversionary tactics. The top rung of the saffron party, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is worried by the padayatra of Rahul Gandhi," Ramesh said at a press conference with party colleague Digvijaya Singh by his side on Sunday. Singh said all senior Congress leaders, ministers and lawmakers in Bihar will take part in the state-wide padayatra. A senior Congress leader in Bihar said Rahul Gandhi will visit the state during the proposed east-west second phase of the 'Bharat Jodo

India's G20 presidency could shape voter mood for 2024

Given the number of events taking place simultaneously across the country, hardly any state will miss out on the G20 extravaganza

Nehru birth anniv: Bharat Jodo Yatris to get copies of 'Discovery of India'

The Congress's Bharat Jodo Yatra led by Rahul Gandhi entered its 68th day as it resumed from Kalamnuri in Hingoli district of Maharashtra on Monday after a one-day break. Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said 600 copies of Jawaharlal Nehru's book 'Discovery of India' will be distributed to the yatra participants on Monday, on the occasion of the birth anniversary of India's first prime minister. The Bharat Jodo Yatra took a one-day break in Maharashtra on Sunday. It proceeded from Kalamnuri in Hingoli to Washim on Monday. Today is 68th day of #BharatJodoYatra & also 133rd birth anniversary of Nehru. We are in Hingoli district & coincidentally a fine book on him in Marathi has just come out in addition to one in English & Hindi," Ramesh said in a tweet. (Mo)Distorians will continue to distort, defame and denigrate but Nehru continues to inspire & his relevance has only increased after 2014. 600 copies of Nehru's iconic, The Discovery of India, will be distributed to

Gujarat Assembly polls: Congress declares 39 candidates in 5th, 6th lists

The Congress on Sunday released two lists of 39 candidates for the Gujarat Assembly elections, fielding Jignesh Mevani from the Vadgam constituency. The party first released its fifth list with six candidates including Manhar Patel from Botad in place of Ramesh Mer. Later in the evening, it released a list of 33 candidates, taking the total number of candidates declared so far to 142. The candidates named in the fifth list were Jayanti Jerajbhai Patel from Morbi, Jivan Kumbharvadiya from Jamnagar Rural, Chhattarsinh Gunjariya from Dhrangadhra, Mansukhbhai Kalariya from Rajkot West and Divyesh Chavda from Gariadhar. In the sixth list of 33 candidates, the candidates fielded by the Congress included Mevani from Vadgam (SC) seat, Thakor Mohansinh from Mansa, Baldevji Thakor from Kalol, Imran Khedawala from Jamalpur-Khadia, Amit Chavda from Anklav and Bal Kishen Patel from Dabhoi. The Congress had on November 4 released its first list announcing the names of 43 candidates for the ...

Gurjars oppose Bharat Jodo Yatra in Raj; politically motivated, says Cong

Gurjar Arakshan Sangharsh Samithi president Vijay Bainsla called for opposing the Rahul Gandhi led-Bharat Jodo Yatra in the Congress-ruled state Rajasthan

Congress to launch state-wide padayatra in Bihar from Dec 28: Jairam Ramesh

Congress is set to launch a state-wide padayatra in Bihar from December 28 on the lines of 'Bharat Jodo Yatra', senior party leader Jairam Ramesh said here on Sunday. He said the 1,200-km-long march against the "communal agenda of the BJP" will start from Banka district and conclude in Bodh Gaya. It will cover 17 districts of the state. Rahul Gandhi, however, is unlikely to take part in the state-wide padayatra in Bihar. "The Bharat Jodo Yatra has unsettled the BJP, which has resorted to cheap and childish diversionary tactics. The top rung of the saffron party, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is worried by the padayatra of Rahul Gandhi," Ramesh said at a press conference with party colleague Digvijaya Singh by his side. Singh said all senior Congress leaders, ministers and lawmakers in Bihar will take part in the state-wide padayatra. A senior Congress leader in Bihar said Rahul Gandhi will visit the state during the proposed east-west second phase of the 'Bharat Jodo ...

Why did UPA govt wait 4 years: Karnataka CM hits out at Siddaramaiah

Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai had claimed that it was the BJP government that decided to name the Bangalore International Airport after Nadaprabhu Kempegowda.